Michael Morgan, now the 25-year-old owner of The iconic watch companysold his first Rolex Submariner when he was just 13 years old – a sale that came mostly out of boredom. “When you're 12, 13, you usually get bored of things very, very quickly,” Morgan says. entrepreneur. “So within six months (of buying it), I knew I wanted to sell (the old Submariner).
How a 13-year-old ended up with a side hustle selling expensive watches? From a young age, around eight or nine, Morgan says he had an appreciation for “old things”. It started with Porsche “I can pick out everything about them.” But kids can't go out and buy a car, so Morgan started collecting coins, stamps and pens before turning his attention to watches.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Iconic Watch Company. Michael Morgan.
“I've always liked watches,” Morgan recalls. “My dad had some nice watches. When I was about 10 years old, I started reading about watches over and over. Pocket watches first. And just like coins and stamps and pens, I realized that pocket watches aren't really useful. And from there I spent most of my time reading for hours (Book) Vintage Rolex became the focus”.
Morgan looked at the pages of that book every day and eventually bought his first vintage Rolex Submariner at the age of 12, trading in a few watches he owned and using some savings to make the purchase that would get him started. side hustle. “I remember it costing me $3,500, which seemed like a lot of money at the time,” says Morgan.
Morgan listed the watch for an “optimistic” $5,500 on an online forum – and was somewhat surprised when the piece sold within two days for $5,200. This was when “the lamp went out;” Morgan realized that his hobby could double as a serious money maker. Although taking up the business full-time was not possible for him young entrepreneur then, he saw this venture as something fun that could help him buy more watches.
“(When I said) 'I'm actually 14,' he was amazed. And he actually ended up becoming a (regular customer).”
A few years later, Morgan knew how to sell his watches side hustle it was the real deal. It was already taking up most of his time and “school was definitely secondary”. Morgan sold watches during his lunch hour and regularly facilitated transactions in the $50,000 range and up, he says. Despite early successes, when he was starting out, Morgan didn't like taking phone calls – because they would give away his age.
“I had a customer who was interested in buying two watches, so I knew I had to make a call,” Morgan recalls. “I'm on the phone with him. I did well and at the end he asked me how old I was. Oh God. I told him (I was 14 years old). At first, he thought it was a joke. (But when I said) 'I'm actually 14,' he was amazed. And he actually ended up becoming a (regular customer).
Although being one young entrepreneur wasn't without its challenges, it came with a big advantage — “a lot of people want to help you when you're young,” Morgan says.
By the time he was 18, Morgan had no interest in him college, but his parents encouraged him to go. He ended up interviewing at the University of Southern California. The first conversation didn't go well, Morgan admits; the interviewer asked vague questions that his own did not allow entrepreneurial acumen to shine. But his father arranged a second interview so Morgan could discuss his business, and at the end of that meeting, Morgan says the interviewer was sending him to USC. Morgan was excited to attend and enrolled, but by the time his junior year began, balancing his workload as a student and business owner it wasn't stable – and he wanted to use the clocks.
“There are probably 30 active people constantly searching (for vintage watches). So the competition has become extremely fierce.”
These days, age isn't Morgan's biggest business challenge: That would be securing the vintage watches he sells. “The problem is we're dealing with vintage watches, and there aren't that many great pieces out there, and as time goes on, there are more and more people looking,” explains Morgan. “When I first started, there were probably five to 10 big people in the U.S. actively buying vintage. (Now), there's probably 30 people actively looking all the time. So ComPeTITIon has become extremely wild”.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Iconic Watch Company
Morgan says he has built a reputation for securing some of the rarest vintage watches – mostly Rolexes – and has flown around the world to buy some of them. “A highlight would be finding the lowest serial number and possibly the first known Rolex GMT-Master from 1955 found through an Instagram DM with history tracing back to Walt Disney,” he notes. Morgan loves the chase and admits that “finding the next great watch is what keeps (him) going every day.”
Morgan's dedication to the business has helped him thrive: He has sold thousands of watches CLIENTS across the globe, and as of 2017, annual revenues have exceeded $10 million, with a primary focus on private sales. And a notable recent transaction? He sold a 1970 Rolex Cosmograph Daytona ref.6263 “Paul Newman” to a prominent collector in Asia for $750,000.
passion made it possible for Morgan to get his own watch business side hustle for a company that has earned more than $110 million, so the entrepreneur encourages all young aspiring entrepreneurs to find theirs — and follow it into their ventures. “Take advantage of your passion if it can lead to a business,” says Morgan. “It's a very lucky opportunity to have. It does it all hard work involved in running your business which is much more enjoyable.”
This article is part of our ongoing series highlighting the stories, challenges and triumphs of being a The Young Entrepreneur®.